The Impossible Girl
by grednforgesgirl
Summary: I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Always, there's the Doctor. Always, I'm running to save the Doctor. And he hardly ever hears me. But I've always been there. Right from the very beginning. *Spoilers for The Name Of The Doctor.* Doctors 1-11/Clara
1. PREQUEL

**A/N: **_**SPOILERS for The Name of The Doctor!**_

_Also, warning, there's a bit of Rose shipping in this first chapter. It only focuses mainly ONLY in this first chapter, however. The rest is mostly Doctor/Clara. Not that there won't be any Doctor/Rose, Doctor/River anywhere else in the story. If you're like me an believe the Doctor can love Rose, River, and Clara all at the same time, this is the thing for you. Can't we all just get along, shippers? The Doctor loves them all, so can't we all love them, too?_

_Anyway, Fantastic! Geronimo! Allons-y!_

_Oh, PS- here's a link to the music "Save the Doctor," which plays during Clara's monologue about all her different lives. It'll help ya get into the mood! Don't forget to remove the spaces!_

_ www. youtube watch?v=7IztfQIB5x4&list=PLE477E14586566D0D_

* * *

**-?-**

I don't know where I am. It's like I'm breaking into a million pieces and there's only one thing I remember. I have to save the Doctor. He always looks different. But I always know it's him. Sometimes I think I'm everywhere at once. Running every second just to find him. Just to save him. But he never hears me. Almost never. I blew into this world on a leaf. I'm still blowing. I don't think I'll ever land. I'm Clara Oswald. I'm the impossible girl. I was born to save the Doctor.

**-?-**

**-A PREQUEL-**

It started with a leaf. A leaf that had to grow in an exact way, in an exact place, so a precise wind could tear it from a precise branch to fly into an exact face, at an exact moment. If just one of those tiny little things had never happened, a boy never would have met a girl, a child never would have been born, and that child would never have saved the most important man in the universe.

The stars would have gone out, and the universe would never have existed. A million planets would have died, and a million people would have never been saved. A million times the Doctor would have died, if that leaf had never grown in that exact place, in that exact way.

Clara Oswald was born to save the Doctor. That exact leaf grew that exact way so Clara Oswald would be born to live a million lives and save the Doctor a million times. That exact leaf grew that exact way with the guidance of one exact hand. That precise hand that was raised to save the Doctor. That exact hand that belonged to one exact girl. The exact girl who was born to save the Doctor.

It started with a lottery ticket. That exact man had to win that exact lottery, and that precise girl had to work in that exact shop, and that precise lottery money had to be taken to an exact man on that exact day, or that girl would never have met the Doctor. And if that girl had never met the Doctor, she could never have made a leaf grow in an exact way.

My name is Rose Tyler. I was born to save the Doctor. I am the Bad Wolf, and I create myself.

I create the universe.

I destroyed the Daleks. I ended the Time War. I doomed a man to live forevermore and never die. I held Time in my hand and I used it to save the Doctor. I saw everything. I saw the what has been, what is, what could be, what must not. I saw my future. I saw his. I helped shape his future to save him. To protect him.

I saw a leaf.

An exact leaf that had to grow in an exact way, in an exact place, so a precise wind could tear it from a precise branch to fly into an exact face, at an exact moment. I saw a girl, the impossible girl. I saw Clara Oswald. The girl who was born to save the Doctor.

I created that leaf. I created that girl.

I am the Bad Wolf, and I was created to save the Doctor. I create to save my Doctor.

It started with a leaf.

**-?-**

**A/N: **_Okay, basically, this is the story of Clara's many lives as she saves the Doctor. Most of them are going to probably be pretty short, as in around 500 words. Some might be longer. I thought this might help fill the gap until the 50__th__! Most of them are just short little snippets telling the stories of the Clara's spread throughout the Doctor's life. _

_I decided to start off with the Bad Wolf creating that leaf bit because, come on, it fits perfectly. That leaf in TROA honestly didn't look like it grew that way naturally. And…this helps me still be able to ship Rose/The Doctor while also shipping The Doctor/Clara. If you don't like Rose, or if you don't like this explanation, then you can just ignore it and skip to the next chapter. I promise it's not at all relevant to the rest of the story, I just thought it would make a nice little prequel and explain some things._

_The next chapter will be posted soon! _


	2. GALLIFREY

**-CHAPTER ONE-**

**-GALLIFREY-**

_I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Sometimes it's like I've lived a thousand lives in a thousand places. I'm born, I live, I die. And always, there's the Doctor. Always I'm running to save the Doctor. Again and again and again. And he hardly ever hears me. But I've always been there. Right from the very beginning. Right from the day he started running. _

It began on Gallifrey.

My name is Clara. I was born on the continent of Wild Endeavor, in the shadow of the mountains of Solace and Solitude. The second sun rises and the mountains shine every morning, making my bedroom glow with light. Framed in my window, between the branches of a tree with shining silver leaves, I could see the shining citadel of the Time Lords.

My parents were Gallifreyian, and they were lovely people. Neither went to the Academy, and they weren't as stodgy as all the other Time Lords. But they raised me. My mother died when I was young. I was only fifty years old. She was a remarkable women. There was this recipe she always used to make. She called it a soufflé. It was the most delicious thing I've ever tasted. I never could quite get the hang of making soufflés.

"The soufflé isn't the soufflé. The _soufflé, _is the recipe," she used to say. She was deep on puddings. Remarkable woman.

She still called me Soufflé Girl, though. I loved it when she called me that. It almost felt as though that were my name.

She said the recipe came from Earth, a far away place in a far away system. I loved hearing tales of Earth as a child. Some part of me imagined it to be home. I dreamed of that blue and green Earth. I dreamed of one day going there in a TARDIS of my own.

At the age of eight I was taken from my family, to enter the Academy. I stood before the Untempered Schism, a gap in the fabric of reality. I stared into Time itself. What I saw was impossible. What I saw was a million lives, spread across Time. I saw a million of my own deaths. I saw a million times I saved a man called the Doctor. I saw myself dying to save him, over and over again a million times. I saw that I was born to save the Doctor. I saw that I am the impossible girl.

_Run, you clever boy. And remember._

I was born to save the Doctor.

I remembered who I am.

And then I ran away.

I never remembered what I saw in the Untempered Schism. No one ever does. But the impression stays with you forever. I've seen Time itself, I saw my future, my past, my present. I saw the truth of who I was. The truth stays in your hearts forever.

Truth enough to know that I had to save the Doctor.

I was never important in the Academy. I was never destined to become anything special. I kept my head down, and worked to not be noticed. Even if I was dead clever and was able to hack into anything. The impossible girl, they called me. It should be impossible to hack into everything, but not for me.

I was good with the children who came to the Academy. While the others teased them for their youth, I helped them. It was my room the children could come to if they needed an ear to listen or a clever mind like mine to help them understand a complex Time Lord theory.

I graduated from the Academy at the age of 80, in the Prydonian chapter. My father watched with an unashamed pride as I received my honors. A full Time Lady.

I passed my TARDIS driving exams with little difficulty. It was easy enough to hack into the system and learn all of the answers. I never got a TARDIS of my own, though. A part of me knew I had to stay on Gallifrey. I had to save the Doctor. And the Doctor was on Gallifrey.

I knew who he was. I had been watching for him. He never saw me, but I saw him. I never knew why it was, but he seemed so familiar. Like I knew him. Like I'd met him before. I knew he was important. A renegade Time Lord who could barely pass his own driving exams. But so important, no matter what the other Time Lords thought.

After I graduated, I worked below the Citadel, in a repair shop for faulty TARDISes. I had worked there for nearly a year. I got the job on behalf of a friend, who was returning the favor of my being a nanny to his children in their young years.

I knew I was meant to be there when I went to the hall of TARDISes that day. I knew I was meant to be there when he and a young girl tried to steal a faulty TARDIS. Not to stop him. But to save him.

"Doctor," I called to him. "Doctor."

His young eyes in his old face met mine across a row of broken TARDISes.

"Yes, what is it? What do you want?"

"I'm sorry, but you're about to make a very big mistake," I informed him. He looked afraid, as though I would stop him. I leaned against an old junky Type 40 TARDIS. A TARDIS that seemed very familiar. I smirked. "Don't steal that one. Steal this one. The navigation system's knackered but you'll have much more fun."

And he stole an ancient Type 40 piece of junk TARDIS. Because of me. I showed him the one with the unlocked door. I listened when he touched her console for the first time. I heard him say she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever known. I watched with a smile as it disappeared with the Doctor and a girl called Susan inside it. I said to the thin air, as though the Doctor could hear me as he ran away from his home to see the stars.

"Run you clever boy. And remember."

My story as a Time Lady is not over yet, but there are so many more stories to tell.

I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Always I'm running to save the Doctor.

**-?-**

**A/N:**_Don't worry, we'll come back to Time Lady Clara. I love this Clara and I've got a bunch of ideas for her. _

_Please don't forget to leave a review!_


	3. AN UNEARTHLY CHILD

**-CHAPTER TWO—**

**-AN UNEARTHLY CHILD-**

_I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Sometimes it's like I've lived a thousand lives in a thousand places. I'm born, I live, I die. And always, there's the Doctor. Always I'm running to save the Doctor. Again and again and again. And he hardly ever hears me. But I've always been there. Right from the very beginning. Right from the day he started running._

My name is Clara Oswin. I live two blocks away from Totter's Lane. The year is 1963, and the date is November 23rd. Today is the day my life begins. Today is the day I remember who I am. Today is the day I die.

I was born in 1937 on November 23 to two wonderful parents. I have a little sister. I like to make soufflés with my mum. I never can quite get the soufflés quite right.

Every day on my way to school I pass by an old Junkyard. Every day I wonder why a police box is in a junkyard. Surely police aren't going to lock up criminals in a junkyard? It doesn't make sense. I try not to dwell on it. My sister says I dream too much.

Everyday I'm joined by my classmate Susan at the corner of Totter's Lane and we walk to school together. She's a bit of an odd child, but so am I.

I don't know where she lives. She never says.

I'm close to one of our teachers. Ms. Wright. Sometimes I think she barely notices me. But she listens when I tell her of Susan, and how she seems to know so much of history. Ms. Wright and Mr. Chesterson then take a special interest in Susan.

They follow her to her home at 76 Totters Lane, the junkyard I pass by every day. They find the police box that is not a police box. I watch from the shadows as an old man I know lets them enter the police box from which they will not return.

"Doctor!" I call out to the old man in a hushed whisper. I don't know how I know his name, but I know he's the Doctor, and I know he needs saving. He turns, as if he can hear me. But he never sees me, and he enters the police box. I never see him again. Not in this life.

It's then that I see him. Standing ominously in the entrance to the junkyard. I recognize him, just as I recognized the Doctor. I don't know how I know, but I know he's the reason I'm here. I know he's my enemy. I know he's an enemy of the Doctor, and I must save the Doctor from him.

The Great Intelligence.

I have to protect the Doctor from him.

He glares at the blue police box, and I know he intends to do something horrible. I have to stop him.

Without a second thought, I grab the Great Intelligence and pull him into oncoming traffic. I hear the long honk of a horn, and the grill of a black car is the last thing I see. The Great Intelligence yells, and he disappears when the car hits him. I know without a doubt he's dead. I've done what I was meant to do.

But as I lay dying on the street surrounding by panicking people, I remember.

My head turns to the junkyard, and I hear the groaning of the TARDIS engines as the police box fades away. My lips turn upward in a smile.

"Run you clever boy," I whisper to the box as the life fades from me. "And remember."

I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Always I'm running to save the Doctor.

**-?-**

**A/N:**_ Please remember to leave a review!_


	4. THE LIBRARY

**A/N:**___I really should be saving these up and posting about one a day, but I just can't resist sharing them with everyone. Please think about leaving a review while you read! I really enjoyed writing this chapter. I felt really clever writing up where Clara fit into this episode(s). _

**-CHAPTER THREE-**

**-THE LIBRARY-**

_I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Sometimes it's like I've lived a thousand lives in a thousand places. I'm born, I live, I die. And always, there's the Doctor. Always I'm running to save the Doctor. Again and again and again. And he hardly ever hears me. But I've always been there. Right from the very beginning. Right from the day he started running._

I was created by a computer.

I am a data ghost in the biggest Library in the universe. Why I am here, taking up space, I don't know. Cal informs me I am important. There is a reason I am here. She can't remember why. She can't remember me, either. Having 4,022 living minds chatting away inside her head does that to a person.

4,022 people saved, no survivors. And yet I am here, taking up space when real, alive people must be saved.

My name is Oswin. I am an echo. I don't know where I am. I know there's something I have to save.

Dr. Moon tells me I forgot.

I don't know what my purpose is until someone gets in the Library. Cal's surprise reverberates in the entire data core. Everyone knows someone is here that shouldn't be here. Someone's got in the Library.

And yet I know these people, as they appear on the screen on my television set. I know him. I know he is the reason I am here. The Doctor.

"And then, you remembered," says Dr. Moon.

Yes. I remember.

While the Doctor and Donna and River and Cal are busy running from shadows, and trying to save the Library, I remember.

Something corrupts the data core. Some Great Intelligence. I have to stop it. It intends to thwart the Doctor.

It's up to me. I'm good with computers. I remember that.

I engineer an anti-virus and it sweeps through the data core, eating up every instance of the Great Intelligence.

My job is done.

But I am still here.

I've saved the computer core, and 4,022 people, I've defeated the Great Intelligence, but there's one more thing I have to do. I have to save the Doctor.

"Doctor." I'm suddenly in the Library, and I'm nothing more than a hologram. He's about to leave with Donna, he's about to walk away from River Song's blue diary and her sonic screwdriver, and I know I can't let that happen. He looks right through me as though he can't see me. But I know he can hear me. "You're about to make a very big mistake. You can't leave yet. You can still save her. The answer is in your sonic screwdriver."

"I can save her," he whispers to himself. "Hold on!" and then he rushes back and picks up River's screwdriver. "Why would I do that? Why would I give her my screwdriver?!"

I provide him a safe landing as he jumps. I linger just long enough to see him smile after he's saved River Song.

And then, I remember.

"Run you clever boy," I whisper as I begin to fade. "And remember."

I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Always I'm running to save the Doctor.

**-?-**

**A/N:**_ Please leave a review! Writers love reviews!_


	5. THE MIND ROBBER

**-CHAPTER FOUR- **

**-THE MIND ROBBER-**

_I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Sometimes it's like I've lived a thousand lives in a thousand places. I'm born, I live, I die. And always, there's the Doctor. Always I'm running to save the Doctor. Again and again and again. And he hardly ever hears me. But I've always been there. Right from the very beginning. Right from the day he started running._

I'm a character in a story. When the book is closed, so am I. I don't exist, unless someone is reading my story.

I'm Clara Oswin. I live in the land of fiction. I was written by a man called the Master.

The setting for my story is in a forest, a forest of words. And a labyrinth. And a castle. For days and years I wander the forest of letters. The labyrinth. The castle. I encounter the strangest things, the strangest people. My comrades. My fellow characters. My friends. Rapunzel, Gulliver, Karkus.

Here there are enemies. The White Robots. Medusa. The Minotaur. These we must run from. These we must hide from.

I see a terrifying man in a top hat who wears a constant leer on his face. He terrifies me. He chases me. He changes his face to a hollow one with no eyes and only a gaping mouth with teeth that whisper. All I can do is run from him. He never catches me.

I see things the others don't. I see a girl with curly hair. I see an impossibly old man with a young face that I think I know. He wears a bow tie. I see two children, a boy and a girl whom I feel responsible for. I see lizard women and a potato dwarf. I see shining strands of light that stretch across all eternity.

None of these things are real. But they are there. I can see them. But I cannot touch them. I run to them, and they are gone before I can reach them.

Such is my life, such is my fate.

Until a blue box arrives.

That's the day everything changes.

He's an odd little man, but I feel a fondness for him I don't understand. He wears an oversized coat and plaid trousers and the sight of him would make me giggle if he weren't so afraid. He's lost them.

"Jamie! Zoe!" he cries out, running through my forest of letters. He searches for his friends he cannot find. I have to help him. I find Jamie and Zoe, and I guide them to him.

I ask Gulliver to help him, to guide him on his way. Gulliver is good at finding his way. He has travelled far and wide. He will help the Doctor.

But the foolish Gulliver gives them away to the toy soldiers, who are our friends but not friends of the Doctor.

"Doctor!" I call out to him from behind a letter-tree as he's led away. He turns, but doesn't see me. He doesn't hear me. Somehow I get the feeling he never does.

I watch as they defeat a charging unicorn by declaring that it doesn't exist. They turn it to stone, and I am amazed.

The Doctor and Zoe must fight off Medusa, and I want to help, but I have my own battle to fight. Because it's then that he appears. He leads the Doctor and Zoe off track through the labyrinth. He's going to lead them to their defeat, and I can't let that happen.

I lead the Doctor and Zoe back on track, and they defeat the Master. And then I know who he is. This man who has haunted me my entire life in this place. He is the Great Intelligence, and he is my enemy.

"You don't exist!" I shout at him. He leers at me.

"I cannot be defeated in so simple a manner," he tells me in a terrifying voice. "For I am _real._"

"No!" I shout at him. I can't believe it. I can't. I have to defeat him. This is the only way. "You're not real! You're _not real! _YOU DON'T EXIST!" I shout at him.

And as he leers he is turned to stone. I am triumphant.

And then the toy soldiers surprise me. I wasn't expecting it. I didn't see them coming. Without warning or provocation, they kill me.

As I lay dying in a white room, I watch as the Doctor gets in his police box, and everything returns to normal. He is safe.

And I remember.

"Run you clever boy," I say with my last breath. "And remember."

I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Always I'm running to save the Doctor.

**-?-**


	6. THE AZTECS

**A/N:**_ This one's a bit short compared to the others. And I'm sorry, I really am, to any Cameca/Doctor shippers in advance. I just thought it was too perfect to not slip in. _

**-CHAPTER FIVE-**

**-THE AZTECS-**

_I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Sometimes it's like I've lived a thousand lives in a thousand places. I'm born, I live, I die. And always, there's the Doctor. Always I'm running to save the Doctor. Again and again and again. And he hardly ever hears me. But I've always been there. Right from the very beginning. Right from the day he started running._

My name is Oswald. I was born in the shadow of a shining Aztec temple.

I am the childcarer. The nanny. I take care of the children while their parents are away on the hunt.

I am not like the others. I do not watch the sacrifices. I cannot bear to watch. When I am asked why, I know the answer is because I know it is wrong. I cannot tell them this, though. I cannot anger the sky-gods. They hear everything. I tell them I have other duties to perform. I haven't time to watch the sacrifices. The sacrifices that always make me sick to my stomach.

I am a strange girl. I don't feel as if I belong here. I spend my time gazing at the stars. I feel as though I am from a different time, a different place. I want to leave, but I cannot.

I know I am waiting, but I do not know what for until the high priestess Yetaxa returns. I have grown old in my wait. I have earned many names. I have become a healer. I am known now as Cameca.

I fall in love with the mysterious man from the stars. The Doctor. He shares with me a cup of cocoa, and we become engaged. I feel as if I know this man. I've met him before. I don't know how, but he seems so familiar. He does not recognize me. He's surprised that he's accidently become engaged to me. I know I must let him go.

I must let him run.

I help him and his companion Ian return to the tomb, and I know he will leave me forever because of this. But I know I must let him go. As he disappears into the tunnel, I turn around, and there he is. The Great Intelligence. I don't know how I know him, but I know he is my enemy. I must stop him. I have to save the Doctor.

When the deed is done and I lay dying, I look back to the tunnel, and I remember.

"Run you clever boy, and remember."

I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Always I'm running to save the Doctor.

**-?-**

**A/N:**_ Okay, I've not *run out of ideas,* _persay,_ I just can't seem to think up any really good ones. I've lost my mojo. Maybe if I go to a quiet place and have a good think about it? :P See what I did there? Or, you lot, my lovely readers, could give me suggestions!_

_Yes! That's a much better idea! If there's anything in particular you want to see, any scene from the series or any plot holes in the Doctor's life you can think of, then leave a review and tell me. I will definitely write about it! There's a long way yet to go until the 50th, and if I run out of my muse on just chapter 5 then we are in trouble. That's where you lovies come in! Let me know if there's anything you've got in mind and I will surely find inspiration!_


	7. ROSE

**A/N:**_ Yeah, this one's a biiiiit longer than I said my standard format would be. Well, I got a bit carried away. I thought about splitting it into two parts…but…eurgh where's the fun in that? This is fanfiction. We read fanfiction for a reason. Mainly to have our shippyness fulfilled. And because we can't stand the wait._

_Thanks to all my lovely reviewers! You've been such an inspiration!_

_Although, to be quite honest, that pool's a bit smaller than I expected it to be : ( It's easy to fix that, though! Remember to leave a review when you've finished reading! And remember, if you have any ideas, I'll happily take suggestions!_

**-CHAPTER SIX-**

**-ROSE-**

_I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Sometimes it's like I've lived a thousand lives in a thousand places. I'm born, I live, I die. And always, there's the Doctor. Always I'm running to save the Doctor. Again and again and again. And he hardly ever hears me. But I've always been there. Right from the very beginning. Right from the day he started running._

Explosions are happening all around me. Shop window dummies are coming to life as I watch in terror. They kill. They march and shoot with their plastic hands.

I'm going to die.

I run and hide, because I am so terrified. They chase me under the London Eye. I end up underground.

It's a dark, scary place I end up in. There are railings and fire and lava and it looks like something out of _Terminator._ I'm scared. I'm so scared.

I'm too young to die. I haven't done anything with my life. I'll have died for nothing, being killed by a plastic shop window dummy. Dad always said I should have worked harder in school.

I'm only 26.

I'm too young. Too young. I don't want to die.

I start to cry, because I'm so afraid. I sink to the floor and cling to a safety railing high above the floor, high above the pit of lava that seems alive. Below me, I hear the whimpering of a terrified boy chained to the railing. I want to help him, but I don't want to get any closer to the pit. I don't want to be noticed.

I don't want to die.

So I hide.

I watch as they storm in, a blonde girl and a man in leather. They are so brave, braver than I could ever be. The man stands before the fire pit, and he _speaks to it._ Perhaps it is alive, after all. I'm curious, now. And my curiosity is enough to make me not so afraid.

And this man…he makes me feels safe. I feel scared for him, but not so scared for _me_ anymore. I feel like I know him. Like I've known him all my life. Like he's one of the most important men in my life. The most important man I've ever known.

But I've no idea who he is. I've never met him before. At least, I don't _think_ I've met him before. I might've forgotten. But I think I would have remembered him. He's very distinctive, with his leather jacket and his sarcastic smile with dark eyes that hold so much pain.

Not to mention those _ears._

A giggle slips out, and I don't feel so scared anymore.

I watch from above as the man bargains with what he calls the Nestene Consiousness, until it comes to a head and he's trapped with two shop window dummies holding him back. He shouts at them, terrified.

"That's not true! I should know, I was there. I fought in the war! I couldn't save your world, I couldn't save any of them!"

I watch as the blonde girl rushes over to a wall, and clutches a chain. It sways ominously in front of my face without her touching it, and I follow the chain with my eyes upward.

Above me, a man I had not noticed before is hacking away at the chain with an axe. I gasp in horror, and look back down at the girl, who clearly intends to swing on it.

My feet thud on the metal grating as I run upward.

"Stop that! What are you doing?!" I yell at the man. He leers at me, eyes cold. I'm afraid again, but I can't let this girl get hurt. I know it's important. I know _she's _important. She's important to _him._

The man with the axe is terrifying looking. He's dressed oddly, as though he's from another age. His whole attire is very _Victorian._

He continues to hack on the chain with the axe, and with every blow the chain the girl now holds in her hands and is hefting herself up onto becomes weaker. When she swings, it will break and fall.

With a rush of courage, I run towards the man, and push him away. I watch in horror at what I've done, as he slips over the railing and falls. Down, down, down.

I turn away. I can't watch him land and die. I barely have enough time to jump at the chain and hold it in place, wrapping it around myself, pushing against the railing with my foot and supporting the girl as she swings to save the Doctor.

How do I know his name?

It's only when she's safe in his arms that I let go of the chain. It's only when the vat of lava is roaring that I realize I'm in trouble.

"Doctor!" I cry down to him. He doesn't hear me. Somehow I get the feeling he never does. He runs into a blue box with the blonde girl and the boy, and I've left on my own as the underground base begins to explode around me.

I only know I have to run.

I get singed badly as I escape. I'm positive my hair has caught fire at least once. I don't know how I make it out alive, but somehow I find myself above ground, the London Eye overhead and the smell of city air sucking into my burned lungs as I cough and gasp for air. Shock is beginning to set in as the adrenaline wears off.

What the hell happened? What the hell have I done? A man plummeted to his death because of me. And I know a man I shoudn't know. Shop window dummies coming to life. Talking lava. What is happening? What the _hell_ just happened?

I might need a drink. Of water. Or maybe something stronger.

Definitely something stronger.

I make my way to a pub. I catch sight of myself in the window and fix myself up so I look somewhat decent. I enter the pub, take a seat at the bar and order myself a scotch on the rocks.

"You don't look like a scotch person," says a man next to me. He speaks with a heavy northern burr.

"Yeah, well, rough day," I mutter back without looking at him. I take a swill of my scotch. I feel a bit better and the shock starts to wear off.

"You shouldn't drink that so fast," he says.

"You're not my—" I start angrily, and look at him properly.

It's big ears. It's leather. It's the Doctor.

"—Doctor," I finish my sentence softly. His eyebrows raise in surprise.

He smiles as my mouth falls open, and he takes a swill of his drink. A scotch, himself.

After a full minute of me staring at him with my mouth open, he chuckles a bit and looks back at me.

"You've got the advantage on me," he says. I abruptly close my mouth, realizing how foolish I look. "What's your name?"

"Clara," I tell him.

"Nice name, Clara," he says. There's a faraway look in his eyes, as if he's remembering something, before his eyes become cold again and he takes another drink. "I suppose you already know I'm the Doctor."

"How do I know that?" I mutter.

The Doctor chuckles.

"I assume you've met me before. I don't think I've met you, though. I dunno. Life of a time traveler. You never can keep it straight in your head."

"Time travel," I say, my eyes wide. He looks at me with his eyes twinkling and he smiles, leaning in close to me as though to impart a great secret.

"All of time and space. Everything that ever happened or ever will. Anywhere you wanna go. And I'll show you, too."

I stare at him with disbelief.

"As far as come on lines go, that one you might wanna keep in your pocket."

"I've got lots of things in my pockets. They're bigger on the inside. You wanna see?"

"Does that one _actually_ work on anyone?"

"Normally, yeah," he says with a grin. "Though I usually get them by the 'all of time and space' bit and then we get to the 'it's bigger on the inside' part." I look at him for a moment with a knowing smile, and then he gasps and blushes, suddenly realizing what he's saying. "My…my, spaceship, that is. My magnificent time and space ship. _Ship, _not my…" he blushes even deeper. "Not that I'm…my _ship. _My _ship._ We're talking about my _ship_ here._"_

"Is that what you call it, then? I've heard some strange ones before, but I've never heard that one."

He blushes an even deeper shade of scarlet and I giggle.

"You should be embarrassed more often. It improves your look a lot."

He huffs.

"Honestly, I've only just looked at myself today. Blimey, the ears. I though' I'd come out a bit better lookin' this time round, guess not. That's the problem with regeneration, yeh never know what you're gonna get. I mean, blimey, my sixth regeneration always walked around with a clown coat. A _clown coat._ Like it was the height of fashion! The Doctor and the Technicolor insanity coat. It was worse than the celery. And my fourth regeneration! I had the _biggest _teeth. Although I do miss that scarf. That was a fantastic scarf." The Doctor shrugged, and took another drink, not noticing at all that I'm looking at him with bemusement. "One o' these days I'll get it right."

"Alright, I think you've had enough," I say sternly, and take his scotch away from him. He frowns.

"Yeah, suppose you're right." The Doctor places a head in his hand, leaning on the bar heavily, and rubs his close-shaven head while looking at me through hazy, slightly drunken eyes. "Have I met you before? You look familiar."

I just smile. He shakes his head as though to clear it.

"I dunno. I've met too many people. That's my problem. I've got too much stuff in my head. I could run across the same girl a thousand times and I wouldn't remember her face."

There's a silent beat.

The bartender comes over and tells the Doctor how much he owes him. The Doctor looks slightly pained.

"I never carry money," he says quietly to me. I roll my eyes. Typical.

"He's on me," I say, forking the cash over. "So long as you tell me how many he's had."

"Six," says the bartender, shaking his head. "He's gonna be hurtin' in the morning."

"I'm a _Time Lord,_" says the Doctor indignantly. "Time Lords don't get _hangovers."_

The bartender shakes his head. "I've seen worse."

"And some water, if you don't mind," I ask the bartender.

"Listen, I could sober up in an _instant_ if I wanted to, I don't need _water,"_ scoffed the Doctor. "You funny little humans. You can never handle your liquor. Even way in the fifty-first century. You'd think you'd 'ave developed a bit of immunity by then, but no yeh just go right on. Makin' fools of yourselves, dancin' like chickens and praying to the porcelain god."

"Oi! I'll bet whose gonna be prayin' to the porcelain god you don't drink that water."

The Doctor rolls his eyes and takes a sip.

"Thing is I don't wanna sober up," he says quietly, his voice suddenly serious. "I thought I had one. I thought she was…she _is_ different. She made me _laugh._ I mean, honest to goodness _laugh._" The Doctor suddenly looks like he's had his heart trampled on. Like he's seen horrors no one could possibly imagine. "I never though' I'd laugh again."

"What happened to her?" I ask quietly.

"She didn't wanna come with me," he says softly.

There's a moment of silence as I contemplate him. Then I nudge him, smiling.

"Maybe you forgot to tell her it travels in time," I say cheekily.

Suddenly his eyes go wide, and his mouth falls open. Then he looks at me, and the biggest grin spreads across his face. Suddenly I find myself being grabbed by the head and kissed full on the mouth by this man. He pulls away quite quickly, leaving me rather stunned and, quite frankly, confused.

"You! You are _fantastic!"_

And he's laughing wildly, and I can't help but grin in return. He dashes out of the bar, and I watch through the window as he runs down the street. I smile as he disappears from view, a strange happiness coming over me.

"Run," I whisper with a smile. "Run you clever boy, and remember."

I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Always I'm running to save the Doctor.

**-?-**

**A/N:**_ This one might be my favorite so far. Love it. Fantastic._

_Oh, and to fill a bit of a plot-hole that I left that I just now remembered...The Doctor was sort-of drunk when he met Clara, hence why he doesn't remember her. He sobered up before he went to go get Rose, as well. Hence why he's not drunk at the end of "Rose"_

_Please leave a review!_


	8. ARC OF INFINITY

**A/N:** _This is the fifth Doctor, Peter Davison, (Stick of celery, if you need a reminder) in case you haven't seen this episode. It takes place on Gallifrey, and the Doctor is sentenced to death by the High Council of the Time Lords. Their attempt to kill him is unsuccessful because of the bad guy, and he gets trapped in this thing called the matrix. No, not THE Matrix. I hate to admit it, but I only watched about half of this episode till it got to where he was stuck in the matrix before I became inspired to write this.(I probably should put a bit of a description of the episodes in all the Classic Who chapters, as well as which Doctor, because chances are a lot of New-Whoers haven't seen a lot of Classic Who. Yeah. That might be a good idea.)_

_Btw, this is actually canon. In the Name of the Doctor, Clara is there when the Doctor is trapped in the matrix. That's when he's sort of floating in the darkness with all those white dashy line thingys. I should put up a little sign…FEATURED IN THE NAME OF THE DOCTOR…lol. _

_I also did this one a bit differently…this is told from the Doctor's perspective instead of Clara's. Just to shake things up. _

_Anyways, I've gabbed enough. _

_Allons-y!_

**-CHAPTER 7-**

**-ARC OF INFINITY-**

_I don't know where I am. I just know I'm running. Sometimes it's like I've lived a thousand lives in a thousand places. I'm born, I live, I die. And always, there's the Doctor. Always I'm running to save the Doctor. Again and again and again. And he hardly ever hears me. But I've always been there. Right from the very beginning. Right from the day he started running._

He's alone, and he's in pain. Such pain. He should be dead, but he's not. He's floating in infinity, he's sure he's dying. He can't stop this pain he's in, he feels this betrayal. He knows he did the right thing, but it _hurts._ The enemy, this thing that wants him dead, this _thing_ made of anti-matter. It taunts him. It wants to trap him, and yeah, sure, that's fine. But does it have to _hurt _him?

And he's alone, so alone.

Until she comes to him. The girl, the girl from his dreams, the girl he's sure he's met before but can never quite remember her face. He knows she's beautiful. He knows she's clever. He's not quite sure she's real, or whether he's made up the perfect girl for himself. But she's there, he's dreamed of her before. He's sure of it.

"_Doctor!"_

She fights to break through into the Matrix, she fights to get to him.

He doesn't know how, maybe it's all in his mind anyway, but she comes into the Matrix, and she wraps her arms around him. She cradles his head and he can _feel_ her. She's there, she's right there. She's always been there. If only he could remember her face…he can't even see her because she's behind him, he can't even see properly through the matrix and the pain he's in. She comforts him, brushes his blonde bangs away from his face, kisses his forehead as he cries out in pain.

"Shh, Doctor, it's all alright. It's going to be alright. Doctor. Doctor, don't worry. Please. Shh, you'll be alright."

He listens to her, her perfect, perky, soft voice. She's so worried about him. He fights through the pain, to get to her. She shouldn't be worried. He'll be alright. He's always alright.

"Doctor, Doctor…shh…it's alright. I'm here. I've got you. You're not alone. You're never alone. I'm always here."

"_Who are you?"_ he says in his mind, or whispers aloud, he's not sure, but she hears him. She never answers the question, though. Never. This he knows without doubt.

"I'm always here," she whispers, her tiny hands coming to rest over his head and his hearts. "I'm always right here. I'll always be with you. I'll always save you. You have to hold on."

"I can't…" he moans. "I can't…"

"Yes, you can, Doctor. Be strong. Be brave. Brave heart, Doctor."

Tegan. That's what he always told Tegan. How does she know? Where has she heard him say it before? How does she know that's what will give him courage?

"It hurts…"

"I know. I know, shh. It's alright. It'll all be over soon."

"How?"

"Talk to him. Be brave, my Doctor."

And then he's there, that monster, and he's threatening the Doctor with Tegan's life unless the Doctor does as he asks. But Tegan can't be here, because Tegan is on Earth.

"She's not real!" he yells. "It's a trick!"

"She's real, Doctor," whispers the girl in his head, "She's real, and you have to save her."

He believes her. He trusts her more than anyone.

"Alright, alright! I'll give you whatever you want!"

And he's falling, falling, falling. He's sure he might be dying. He's supposed to be dead, anyway. Wasn't that the Time Lords plan?

But no, he's not dead, he's very much alive. She catches him before he falls, she saves him. She insures that the matrix is stable enough to eject him. He's alive again, thanks to her. She whispers something as he begins to appear back on the platform, something he can't quite make out. Or, if he does, he can't quite remember what she said.

"_Run you clever boy, and remember me."_

**-?-**

**A/N:**_ Please leave a review, my dear readers! You are lovely!_


	9. ASSIMILATION

**A/N:** _Sorry for the long wait! I've been really, really super busy. I've been writing my other story, "Remember Me" and, by the way, if you like this story, I guarantee you will love that one, and you should go read it. It's about Clara as a Time Lady, and, quite honestly, it spawned from this story because I had so many god damn ideas for a Time Lady Clara. And it's turned into quite the project. Anyway, if you haven't already, you should go read it._

_And I've kinda been lacking in ideas for this story. BUT I HAD A BRILLIANT IDEA. I feel like a genius, honestly, for seeing this connection. It fits PERFECTLY._

_Okay, basically, this one takes place during the Comic "Assimilation." Which is the only legit Doctor Who, Star Trek: TNG crossover. And "Clara" is from the ST: TNG episode "Imaginary Friend." And I like got super excited, because I'm like… "Clara." "CLARA!" "OMG __**CLARA!"**__And I couldn't not. Also, this is in poem format. And I suck at poems, but it fit better than a proper story. _

_Anyway, here it is!_

**-CHAPTER EIGHT-**

**-ASSIMILATION-**

?

Little Clara had an imaginary friend.

Little Clara's imaginary friend was pretty, perfect.

Blonde and blue-eyed.

A pretty blue dress with white buttons.

?

Little Clara's imaginary friend was Isobel.

Little Clara's imaginary friend was real.

Nobody believed little Clara.

Not until Isobel came to life.

?

Little Clara's imaginary friend was deadly.

Little Clara's imaginary friend attacked the ship.

Little Clara saved the ship from her imaginary friend.

But little Clara's destiny was even greater than that.

?

Little Clara was one in a million.

Little Clara was the only one in this universe.

Little Clara was an Impossible Girl.

Little Clara was born to save the Doctor.

?

And so when the Doctor came to call,

With Amy and Rory at his side,

Little Clara would save the day,

Little Clara would save the Doctor.

?

The Cybermen and Borg team up,

And threaten little Clara's world.

Little Clara must help the Doctor.

Little Clara would save the Doctor.

?

They were there,

And the Doctor didn't see,

But little Clara saw,

And saved the Doctor.

?

But little Clara didn't see,

Behind her, standing tall,

An evil Borg, waiting to convert,

The small child would be assimilated.

?

And as they placed the parts,

On little Clara's face,

Replacing parts of her,

As she was dying,

?

She whispered ,

Because it came to her, as she was dying,

And she remembered.

?

"Run you clever boy, and remember."


End file.
